Redskins take long route to Rice Stadium

By: HEATH HAMILTON

Published 6:00 pm, Wednesday, November 17, 2004

Four overtimes later, the Lamar Redskins are headed to the next round of playoff competition.

After scoring the games first 21 points in its bidistrict game Saturday, Lamar held an early, sizable advantage over Port Arthur Memorial but by the end of regulation the score was deadlocked at 28-28. Eventually, with Lamar leading 57-49, Redskins defensive back Dale Lloyd was able to knock down a fourth-down pass to preserve the win.

It was probably one of the most exciting things Ive been a part of, says Redskins head Coach Tom Nolen. We fought so hard all game and Im glad we were able to make a play at the end.##M:(full story)##

This Saturday, the Redskins will continue their playoff season against the Clear Lake Falcons. The game kicks off at 2 p.m. at Rice Stadium.

The Falcons finished their season in District 24-5A at 5-1 and with a 10-1 overall record. On offense, they play a different style than what the Redskins saw against Port Arthur Memorial.

Theyre an option team, so well have to go back to the drawing board on how to defend these guys, says Nolen.

The Falcons quarterback, senior Scott Oswald, is the leading rusher on the team. While running the option, he usually runs the ball himself. For the year, he rushed for 1,591 yards and a team-leading 26 touchdowns. In their bidistrict playoff game against La Porte, Oswald had 102 yards and crossed the goal line twice.

The teams second-leading rusher is senior halfback Elrick Jones. On the year, he ran for 748 yards and eight touchdowns. He also led the team with 9 yards per carry.

In the game against La Porte, he was the leading rusher with 117 yards for a touchdown.

To counter this kind of offense, Nolen and the Redskins will have to implement a different defensive strategy.

Since they run the option, well have to play assignment defense, says Nolen. Thats where our defensive players are assigned to a certain player on the other side of the ball and basically key on whoever theyre assigned to.

On offense, the Redskins will try and do what theyve done all year, and make sure that theyre executing right.

Theyre good on defense as well, so we have our work cut out for us, says Nolen.

To counter that, the Redskins will utilize their premier wide receivers, Brandon Lafell and Quincy Driver.

Brandon Lafell had a phenomenal game against Port Arthur, says Nolen.

Against the Titans, Lafell caught the ball for a team-leading 139 yards and two touchdowns. On the other side of the ball, he also contributed with two interceptions.

Driver, the Redskins other option in the air, has 500 yards receiving for the year with seven touchdowns. Throwing to these two is quarterback Demetrius Woods. Against La Porte, he threw for 230 yards with three touchdowns and had the same number of interceptions. He was also the second-leading rusher for his team that game with 46 yards and a touchdown. The Redskins primary ball carrier is running back Jonathan Lewis. He led the team with 59 rushing yards and one touchdown in their last game. For the year, he has run for 655 yards and six touchdowns.

The offensive line played really well against Port Arthur and they have a good defensive front, says Nolen. We were able to hold them pretty well and we ended up with about 400 yards of total offense.

As the Redskins get ready for their second playoff game, they are trying to enjoy themselves.

Were extremely happy to still be playing and we feel our chances are good, says Nolen.